Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Shocking: Brooklyn College Sponsors Anti-Semitic Lectures

If it was just a group of students sponsoring yet another anti-Israel event,
I’d have nothing to say. Everyone is entitled to their opinion—preferably an
informed one. But that’s not what’s happening at Brooklyn College.

On February 7, the Political Science Department of Brooklyn College is co-sponsoring
a hate-filled, Israel-bashing event. And they aren’t just sneaking this by the
administration—a statement from Brooklyn College President Karen Gould admits,
“The event is co-sponsored by several campus and community organizations,
including the Political Science Department.”

This lecture—which is essentially funded by tax dollars—gives a platform to
the BDS movement, whose goal is to de-legitimize Israel’s existence. Like its
philosophical brothers in Hamas, BDS aims to eliminate the State of Israel from
the map. Only its tactics differ from its terrorist cousins: While Hamas blows
up buses of innocent men, women and children, BDS works to isolate Israelis,
to cut them off from business. Yes, BDS is the benevolent face of
anti-Semitism. They don’t suggest killing Israeli citizens with bombs; they prefer
starvation via isolation.

On February 7, Brooklyn College invites its students to hear seasoned propagandist
Omar Barghouti, founder of the BDS—a man who has not only compared Israelis to
Nazis, but also adds that he won’t take a lecture from a “white person”; that,
as far as he’s concerned, “the white race is the most violent in [the] history
of mankind.”

In addition to Barghouti, Judith Butler has been invited to sway students to
her way of thinking. And her way of thinking is that terror organizations Hamas
and Hezbollah are “progressive social movements.”

Jewish hatred has taken more shapes and colors than I care to list. It is a
very, very old vice. It certainly existed long before the State of Israel was
even a twinkle in Theodore Herzel’s eye. The boycott campaign against Israel
today and the philosophical war demonizing Jews and denying the rights of Jews
to self-determination and equality, is the modern incarnation of anti-Semitism.
Same stink, different excuse.

As for Paisley Currah who chairs the Brooklyn College Poli-Sci Dept., he has
now refused to speak with my office three times. We weren’t told he was
unavailable—he just won’t come to the phone.

But I did have a lengthy conversation today with Brooklyn College President
Karen Gould. The blame for this travesty falls squarely on her shoulders. I am extremely
saddened and disappointed by her lack of courage to do the right thing. She
just doesn’t have the guts to stop it. Allowing Brooklyn College to officially co-sponsor
this hatefest will have a chilling effect on Brooklyn College and CUNY’s Jewish
students.